JEDDAH, 22 June 2004 — In an effort to boost standards of education, Saudi Arabia yesterday decided to set up a body to oversee higher education and a national center to review the education system.
The weekly Cabinet meeting chaired by Crown Prince Abdullah at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah merged the Higher Commission for Education Policies and the Higher Education Council into a single body, to be called the Supreme Education Council.
It will be headed by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd, with members including the ministers of higher education, civil service, finance, economy and planning, the chairman of King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology and three university rectors. Three education experts will serve on the council for a three-year term.
The Cabinet also brought all colleges for women and women’s teacher training colleges under the Ministry of Higher Education.
Minister of Culture and Information Dr. Fouad Al-Farsy told the Saudi Press Agency the Cabinet praised the security forces for the successes scored over the past days that resulted in the killing and capture of a number of terrorists.
On Friday security forces killed Abdul Aziz Al-Muqrin, the suspected leader of Al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia, and three other terrorists involved in a series of deadly attacks, mostly on foreigners.
“What has been achieved over the past days was the result of great efforts by the courageous members of the security forces, who sacrificed their lives to ensure the security of the country and safety of the citizens and expatriates,” Al-Farsy quoted a Cabinet statement as saying.
The Cabinet praised the cooperation of Saudi citizens with security forces in the fight against terror. “Citizens and security forces stand hand in hand to defeat this criminal group,” the statement said.
In his address to the Council of Ministers, the crown prince underlined the achievements of the Shoura Council, which opened its new round of sessions on Sunday.
He said its importance extended beyond reviewing national and international issues to providing advice and reviewing the performance of government bodies.
The work of the Shoura led to important government decisions that benefited the country and its people, Prince Abdullah said.
The Cabinet also reviewed the recommendations of the sometimes turbulent Third National Dialogue Forum held in Madinah last week on women’s issues.
The crown prince said the recommendations reflected the teachings of Islam, which guaranteed women’s rights and obligations more than 14 centuries ago, Al-Farsy said.
The Cabinet in turn praised the crown prince’s speech at a reception for delegates to the forum in which he stated there would be no compromising the application of Islamic teachings and values.
